PORT ROYAL: Rick Lafferty didn't feel comfortable through the first three weeks of the 2014 racing season.

This is the first year he has run a containment seat, and he felt a little out of sorts in the cockpit. It didn't help that he was way off during last week's opener at Port Royal Speedway, a track he hits on a weekly basis.

But Lafferty was on point Saturday night. He made some tweaks throughout the week and came to The Port prepared and ready to race.

It paid off.

Lafferty caught a break when leader Brent Marks got mixed up with a lapped car. That put the Pennington, N.J., ace out front, and he wasn't challenged in breezing to victory in the 25-lap Sprint Car feature at the Juniata County oval.

“I sucked last week,” Lafferty said. “I did a lot of homework this week, and we came back strong figuring it was going to be dry with a 6 o'clock start.

“Last week, we were just too stiff. This week, I came back more prepared for a dry-slick track and we were pretty good.”

Brent Marks was better.

It seemed that way through the opening stages of the event. Marks blasted his way out front from his pole starting spot over Lafferty, who disposed of Lynton Jeffrey for the runner-up position on lap 1.

Marks negotiated the dry-slick surface with ease. He caught the back of the field by lap 6 and increased his advantage to a half straightaway.

But Marks' march through backmarkers was his undoing. He tried to pass between Davey Sammons and the outside fence when the two made contact, which sent Sammons into an end-over-end flip and Marks to the pit area on lap 8.

“I felt him hit me in the right rear,” Sammons said. “I didn't see or hear him. I feel bad because he was the leader, but that happens in racing sometimes.

“I ran the same line for five or six laps. I didn't change anything.”

Said Marks, “I had so much momentum on the top, like 20 mph on those guys, and there was a big gap. I stuck my nose in and didn't even see him. All of a sudden, I felt a big collision. It sucks the way it turned out because we had such a good race car.”

That left Lafferty out front with no equal.

Lafferty cruised ahead of Jeffrey, Mike Wagner and Dave Ely over the next nine circuits until Dave Hahn shredded a left rear tire entering Turn 1 on lap 17.

That only postponed the inevitable. Lafferty was a rocket on the restart and opened up a full-straightaway lead within three laps.

The field had no answer. Lafferty caught the rear of the field by lap 24 and was an easy winner over Jeffrey, Wagner, Ely and Curt Michael.

“Lapped traffic, I mean, you never know what is going to happen,” Lafferty said. “Maybe it was my turn.

“I just tried to keep the car as straight as I could as fast as I could and not get tangled up with lapped cars like Marks did.”

Continued Lafferty, “When I get going pretty good, I usually keep some momentum for a while. I hope that continues.